Morning journal and courier., 1887-02-24
ON THE CONSOLIDATED ROAD

YIN AAE CONSOLHDATED ROAD.
Am Important Experiment Made Yes
terday Near HartfOrd-A Probability
That All Cars on the Road Will Be
fore Long be Steam Reated-The
Electric Light to be Tried shortly
on Two of the Fast Through Trains
-Ex-COnductor SchOfie1d is Tempo
rar1ly Appointed superintendent,
Vice Stevenson.
Great are the improvements made in rail-
reading in thirty years, and great are the i'm
provements still being made. The Consol
idated road justly ranks with the very best
in construction and management in the
United States and seems to be almost per-
feet in all points, but notable improvements
are still to be made. The day of the oil
lamp in railroad cars, and the day of stoves
in railroad cars, are practically numbered.
The iron horse is most useful animal and
| is to be rendered more SO, and the electric
light is to be yoked into service in the cars
! to some extent at least, provided it does not
prove SO expensive as to rule itself out from
being factor in railroad progress. In
conversation with Vice President Reed last
evening that distinguished railroad official
gave some very interesting facts, which the
ject of heating cars by steam and lighting
them by electricity. The Consolidated road
contemplates lighting by electricity the two
fast trains which leave New York and Bos-
ton respectively at 4:30 p. m. daily. These
trains run via Springfield, and make the trip
1t is intended to make the experiment
of lighting the cars by electricity
on these two trains. The experiment
cannot be tried until the middle of March,
and it is as intimated question yet whether
this mode of lighting will be adopted, as it
is very costly. Beside, it takes as long to
replenish the cars with the requisite supply
of electricity it does to consume it. In
other words, it will take nine hours to ex-
haust the supply and as long to replenish it.
1t Is known, Of course, that cars can be light
ed by electricity, but whether it will prove
thoroughly practicable and not too costly is
another question. But the public will await
with interest the result and the railroad COM
pany is anxious to serve the public
with every comfort and as fully
as possible The idea is to light
each car with eighteen or twenty incan-
descent lights. This will make the car
light as day, and pretty trains of cars are
as they shoot by on a dark night with the
old lighting system the effect with cars lit as
light as day by the electric lights will be far
more dazzling and brilliant spectacle. The
passengers also will be able in the brilliantly
lighted car to read their newspapers, foot up
their accounts, indite billet-doux and in gen
eral find as much light in the cars as in the
most brilliantly lighted store or drawing
room charity ball. Young couples on a
bridal tour passing through cavernous and
dark tunnels will have to postpone their
demonstrations of love and confidence, which
is the only apparent objection that such
system of Car lighting may meet with.
Also an equally notable and still more i'm
portant improvement is to be made, as was
practically decided by an experiment made
yesterday near Hartford on the Consolidated
road. This is the heating of passenger cars
by steam which is taken from che locomotive
The recent terrible railroad disaster
in Vermont has centered public atten- |
ton all over the United States upon the sub |
ject of providing a safe mode of heating cars. |
The experiment yesterday was very success |
full. Exhaust steam from the locomotive was |
used for heating the cars, and it was used |
for the purpose after it had been used for the |
Dir brake purposes, or for supplying the air |
with which to operate the brakes. 1t was |
found that the steam thus used twice over |
was abundantly sufficient to amply warm the |
cars, and from the success of the experiment |
it seems to be quite probable that |
all the cars on the Consolidated system will |
be heated by steam when another winter sets |
in The expense, it is found, will be actual |
ly less than in the present mode of heating |
by steam or stove, while all danger of cars
taking fire from the heating apparatus will
be avoided. The heating of railway ears by
steam from the locomotive is being success
fully done on train run on the road IN
Maine between Portland and Bangor and
train thus heated has been run ali the past
winter on the Boston & Albany road from
Springfield to Boston and return daily; also
\ train similarly heated has been run for
number of months on the Connecticut River
railroad. The time is not far off when the |
heating of railroad cars by stoves will be
thing of the past.
JOSEPH sCHoFIELD, AN Elk CONDUCTOR, BE-
COMES SUPERINTENDENT sTEvENsoN'S Sue
CEssoR.
A meeting of Consolidated road officials
was held in New York yesterday Joseph
Haven road, was appointed superintendent
emporarily, vice William II. Stevenson re-
signed. Mr.. Schofeld is at present in charge |
at the Grand Central depot, New York.